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Warm tributes to man 'big in intellect, imagination and heart'

FORMER BISHOP OF DOWN AND CONNOR, CARDINAL CAHAL DALY, PASSES AWAY

A LOCAL priest who served as secretary to the former
Catholic Primate of All-Ireland, Cardinal Cahal Daly, who died last week,
has described him as someone with 'big in intellect, vision, imagination and
a big of heart.' The Parish Priest of St Anne's in Dunmurry, Fr
Edward
O'Donnell, served as the Cardinal's secretary during his time as Bishop of
Down and Connor from 1982 to 1990. "Cahal Daly was a big man. Physically
small in stature perhaps but in every other sense a big man - big in
intellect, in vision and imagination but above all big of heart," he said.
"His intellect allowed him to be confident in himself but his sense of
compassion for others made him a humble man. It was this rare mixture of
confidence and humility which made him such an attractive personality." He
said that there was always a constant stream of visitors from all parts of
the world who came to discuss current religious and political issues with
him.

"This kept him at the heart of the Catholic Church in
Ireland and beyond for almost 50 years first as priest/lecturer in Queen's
University Belfast, then as bishop successively in Ardagh and Clonmacnois
(1967-1982) Down and Connor (1982-1990) and in Armagh (1990-1996) where in
1991 he was created cardinal," he said.

"He was an omnivorous reader and over the years built up
a personal library of some 20,000 volumes which on his retirement he donated
to Queen's University, Belfast.

"For Cahal Daly scholarship was a real joy. But this was
not a pursuit of learning for its own sake. His keen sense of pastoral
responsibility sprang from the learning and in particular from his reflection on it a reflection which in turn led back to
and influenced his scholarship." Speaking of his work during the Troubles Fr
O'Donnell said: "It was therefore with great inner strength and courage that
he met the challenges and emerging at that time. He tackled head on the
problems of social justice and violence."

He concluded: "He was unfailingly courteous, temperate
and always a gentlemen. Members of his staff said that regardless of their
errors, mistakes or -negligence he was never irritable or
critical. It takes little imagination to realise the loyalty that this
attitude engendered in his staff and how working for him could never be
conceived as a nine of five job."

During a special service at St Peter's Cathedral on
Sunday Fr O'Donnell said: "He did not underestimate the problems facing the
Church, nor did he believe that there were simple solutions around the
corner. "But he was convinced that the credibility of the Church could only
come from Christ. However, he was acutely aware of the importance of
translating Christ's Gospel into pastoral initiatives, geared to a land in
which the concept of "Christian society" is now seriously weakened, and in
some places gone." Fr Dermot McCaughan, Parish Priest of St Patricks in
Lisburn, said that Cahal Daly will always be remembered as an outstanding
leader who had 'strong principles' and was totally opposed to violence.

"He was a champion of peace and justice and he helped
bring the conflict to a conclusion," he said. "He was a very wise scholar
and someone of immense compassion."